Nigeria national football team

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nigeria

Nickname

Super Eagles

Association

Nigeria Football Association

Confederation

CAF (Africa)

Head coach

Berti Vogts, 2007-

Captain

Joseph Yobo

Most caps

Mudashiru Lawal (86)

Top scorer

Rashidi Yekini (37)

Home stadium

Abuja Stadium & Surelere Stadium

FIFA code

NGA

FIFA ranking

Highest FIFA ranking

5 (April 1994)

Lowest FIFA ranking

32 (November 1999)

Elo ranking

Highest Elo ranking

14 (May 31 2004)

Lowest Elo ranking

87 (December 27 1964)





First kit





Second kit

First international

Nigeria 2 - 0 Sierra Leone

(Lagos, Nigeria; 8 October 1949)

Biggest win

Nigeria 22 - 0 Singapore

(Lagos, Nigeria; 28 November 1959)

Biggest defeat

Ghana 7 - 0 Nigeria

(Accra, Ghana; 1 June 1955)

World Cup

Appearances

3 (First in 1994)

Best result

Round 2, 1994 and 1998

African Nations Cup

Appearances

14 (First in 1963)

Best result

Winners, 1980 and 1994

Confederations Cup

Appearances

1 (First in 1995)

Best result

4th, 1995

Men’s Football
Olympic medal record
Gold	1996 Atlanta	Team

The Nigeria national football team, nicknamed the Super Eagles, is the national team of Nigeria and is controlled by the Nigeria Football Association. The highest position ever reached on the ranking was 5th in April 1994. According to FIFA's rankings, Nigeria, at 36th, are currently the 5th best team on the African continent.

1 History
2 Nigeria Football Achievements
- 2.1 World Cup record
- 2.2 African Cup of Nations record
3 Current squad
4 Famous players
5 Manager history
6 Top 10 Goalscorers
7 Forthcoming fixtures
- 7.1 Group 3
- 7.2 Players with Nigerian roots
8 External links

[edit] History

Nigeria reached the World Cup for the first time in Football World Cup 1994.They were managed by Clemens Westerhof who is commonly considered to be the best coach to have ever lead Nigeria. Nigeria topped their group which included Argentina, Bulgaria, and Greece. In their first game Nigeria defeated Bulgaria 3-0, lost to Argentina 2-1, and qualified for the second round after a 2-0 defeat of Greece. In the second round Nigeria played Italy and took the lead with a goal from Amunike at 25 min. Nigeria were within 1 minute of qualifying for the Quarter finals of 1994 World Cup in the game against Italy but Roberto Baggio scored to take the game to extra time. He also scored the eventual winning goal.

In 1998 Nigeria returned to the World Cup alongside Cameroon, Morocco, Tunisia, and South Africa. Optimism was high due to their manager Bora Milutinovc and the return of most 1994 squad members. In the final tournament Nigeria were drawn into group D with Spain, Bulgaria, Paraguay. Nigeria scored a major upset by defeating Spain 3-2 after coming back twice from being 1-0 and 2-1 down. The Eagles qualified for the second round with win against Bulgaria and loss to Paraguay. Their hopes of surpassing their 1994 performance was shattered after a 4-1 loss to Denmark.

Th 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea Japan, saw Nigeria again qualify with optimism. With a new squad and distinctive pastel green kits the Super Eagles were expected to build on their strong performances in the 2000 and 2002 African Cup of Nations. Nigeria were drawn into group F with powerhouses Sweden, Argentina, and England. They started their first game against Argentina with a strong defence and kept the first half scoreless. However in the 61st minute Gabriel Batistuta breached the Nigerian defense to put Argentina in the lead 1-0 and win the game. Nigeria's second game against Sweden saw them take the lead but later lose 2-1. There was little consolation when Nigeria drew 0-0 with England and bowed out in the first round.

Nigeria missed out on qualification for the 2006 World Cup to Angola. Both teams finished level on points in the group but Nigeria even with a greater goal difference missed out due to their inferior head to head record against Angola.

Nigeria won the African Nations Cup twice (1980 and 1994), and also won the gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics.

The 1970s also witnessed tremendous achievements. Nigeria's senior football team won a gold medal in the 2nd All-Africa games. The country's record of football achievement continued in the 1980s with series of successes. The bronze medals won in 1976 and 1978 in the African Cup of Nations were improved upon in 1980. The Christian Chukwu led Super Eagles won the Cup for the first time in Lagos. In 1984 and 1988, Nigeria again got to the finals of that championship but lost to Cameroon on both occasions to win the silver medals. Three of the four African titles won by Cameroon have been won by defeating Nigeria. Missing out to Cameroon on many occasions has created an intense rivalry between both nations. Two notable occasions; narrowly losing out on qualification for 1990 World Cup and then the controversial final of the 2000 African Nations Cup where a goal scored by Victor Ikpeba during a penalty shoot out was disallowed by the referee.

Nigeria's Under 17 youth teams won the inaugural Under-16 World Championship in 1985 and the Under-17 (the age limit was raised) title in 1993. The under 17 team is known as the Golden Eaglets while the Under 21 team is known as the Flying Eagles.

Nigeria's Flying Eagles qualified for the first time to represent Africa in a Junior World Cup in Mexico. Although, Nigeria did not go beyond the first round, having lost 0-3 to Brazil, it beat the highly rated USSR 1-0 and held the Netherlands to a goalless draw.

In 1985, Nigeria's under-17 football team went to China and conquered the world in the first ever FIFA U-17 World Championship. The victory took Nigerian football to a high pedestal, setting the stage for a respect of Nigeria in international competitions. To prove a point of Nigeria's new found strength in football, the nation's under-20 team went to Saudi Arabia for the FIFA World Youth Championship in 1989 and lost narrowly in the final to Portugal. The "miracle of Damman", Nigeria's victory over USSR at the quarter final stage; after trailing four goals behind and with only twenty five minutes left, stunned the world during the championship.

[edit] Nigeria Football Achievements

Afro-Asian Cup of Nations :

1 Time Champion (1995)

CEDEAO Cup :

1 Time Champion (1990)

Olympic Gold Medal Atlanta '96

Nigeria, coached by Dutchman Johannes Bonfrere, started their path to the final with a 1-0 victory over Hungary and a 2-0 win over Japan before completing the first round with a 1-0 loss to Brazil. The Africans then shut down Mexico and goalkeeper Jorge Campos, 2-0, in the quarter-finals to set up a pair of amazing matches.

Losing in the semi-finals to a favoured Brazilian side that boasted Bebeto, Ronaldo and Rivaldo, 3-1, Nigeria finally woke up in the 78th minute as Victor Ikpeba scored from 20 meters. As time was running out, captain Nwankwo Kanu took center stage, scoring in a scramble in front of the goal in the final minute to equalize. With extra-time barely three minutes out, Kanu fired home the game-winner from 16 meters to complete one of the great comebacks of international football history and in what many observers felt was the greatest Olympic match ever played.

As if trying to top themselves, the Nigerians then staged another miraculous comeback against Argentina in the gold-medal match in front of 86,117 spectators in the Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia.

The Argentines held a 2-1 advantage on goals by Claudio Lopez (third minute) and Hernan Crespo (tournament-best sixth goal on a penalty kick in the 50th minute) before the Nigerians equalized on Daniel Amokachi's shot in the 74th minute. With a minute remaining, Emmanuel Amunike pulled off some 11th-hour heroics as he took advantage of a botched offside trap and beat goalkeeper Pablo Cavallero from point-blank range for the winning goal in a 3-2 triumph. "I guarantee you that as I talk to you now, everyone in Africa is celebrating," forward Sunday Oliseh said. "There is no sleeping tonight. Everyone will be happy. This is for all the African countries."

[edit] World Cup record

1930 to 1958 - Did not enter
1962 - Did not qualify
1966 - Withdrew
1970 to 1990 - Did not qualify
1994 - Round 2
1998 - Quarter Finals
2002 - Round 1
2006 - Did not qualify

[edit] African Cup of Nations record

1957 - Did not enter
1959 - Did not enter
1962 - Withdrew
1963 - Round 1
1965 - Did not enter
1968 - Did not qualify
1970 - Withdrew
1972 - Did not qualify
1974 - Did not qualify
1976 - Third place
1978 - Third place
1980 - Champions
1982 - Round 1

1984 - Second place
1986 - Did not qualify
1988 - Second place
1990 - Second place
1992 - Third place
1994 - Champions
1996 - Withdrew from tournament
1998 - Disqualified for failure to participate in 1996
2000 - Second place
2002 - Third place
2004 - Third place
2006 - Third place

[edit] Current squad

[edit] Goalkeepers

Name	Position	Date of Birth	Place of Birth	Club
Dele Aiyenugba	Goalkeeper	November 20, 1983	Jos	Enyimba
Austin Ejide	Goalkeeper	April 8, 1984	Onitsha	Bastia
Vincent Enyeama	Goalkeeper	August 29, 1982	Unknown	Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv
Greg Etafia	Goalkeeper	Unknown	Unknown	Moroka Swallows
Carl Ikeme	Goalkeeper	June 8, 1986	Sutton Coldfield	Wolverhampton Wanderers

[edit] Defenders

Name	Position	Date of Birth	Place of Birth	Club
George Abbey	Defender	October 20, 1978	Port Harcourt	Port Vale
Rabiu Afolabi	Defender	April 18, 1980	Osobo	Sochaux
Onyekachi Apam	Defender	December 30, 1985	Aba	Nice
Celestine Babayaro	Defender	August 29, 1978	Kaduna	Newcastle United
Joseph Enakarhire	Defender	November 6, 1982	Warri	Bordeaux
Chidi Odiah	Defender	December 17, 1983	Unknown	CSKA Moscow
Isaac Okoronkwo	Defender	May 1, 1978	Aba	FC Moskva
Nedum Onuoha	Defender	November 12, 1986	Warri	Manchester City
Bob Osim	Defender	Unknown	Unknown	Heartland
Obinna Nwaneri	Defender	March 19, 1982	Unknown	Sion
Taye Taiwo	Defender	April 16, 1985	Lagos	Marseille
Ifeanyi Udeze	Defender	July 21, 1980	Lagos	Unattached
Joseph Yobo	Defender	September 6, 1980	Kano	Everton

[edit] Midfielders

Name	Position	Date of Birth	Place of Birth	Club
Yusuf Ayila	Midfielder	November 4, 1984	Unknown	Dynamo Kyiv
Sani Kaita	Midfielder	May 2	Lagos	Sparta Rotterdam
John Obi Mikel	Midfielder	April 22, 1987	Jos	Chelsea
Paul Obiefule	Midfielder	May 15, 1986	Unknown	Viborg FF
Christian Obodo	Midfielder	May 11, 1984	Lagos	Udinese
Seyi Olofinjana	Midfielder	June 30, 1980	Lagos	Wolverhampton Wanderers
Oguchi Uche	Midfielder	Unknown	Unknown	Lobi Stars

[edit] Strikers

Name	Position	Date of Birth	Place of Birth	Club
Julius Aghahowa	Striker	February 12, 1982	Benin City	Wigan Athletic
Ajide Akande	Striker	December 24, 1985	Unknown	AC Bellinzona
Victor Anichebe	Striker	April 23, 1988	Lagos	Everton
Nwankwo Kanu	Striker	August 1, 1976	Owerri	Portsmouth
Stephen Makinwa	Striker	July 26, 1983	Lagos	Lazio
Obafemi Martins	Striker	October 28, 1984	Lagos	Newcastle United
Victor Obinna	Striker	March 25, 1987	Jos	Chievo Verona
Peter Odemwingie	Striker	July 15, 1981	Tashkent	Lille
John Utaka	Striker	January 8, 1982	Legugnu	Stade Rennais
Aiyegbeni Yakubu	Striker	November 22, 1982	Benin City	Middlesbrough

[edit] Famous players

[edit] Manager history

Team managers of Nigeria and the dates they took over.

Date appointed	Manager name
2007 - present	Berti Vogts
2005 - 2007	Augustine Eguavoen
2002 - 2005	Christian Chukwu
2002	Adegboyega Onigbinde
2000 - 2002	Shaibu Amodu
1999 - 2000	Johannes Bonfrere
1999 - 1999	Thijs Libregts
1998 - 1998	Bora Milutinović
1997 - 1998	Monday Sinclar
1997 - 1998	Philippe Troussier
1996 - 1997	Shaibu Amodu
1995 - 1996	Johannes Bonfere
1994 - 1995	Shaibu Amodu
1989 - 1994	Clemens Westerhof
1987 - 1989	Paul Hamilton
1988 - 1989	Manfred Hoener
1985	Patrick Ekeji
1984 - 1986	Chris Udemezue
1983 - 1984	Adegboyega Onigbinde
1981	Gottlieb Goller
1979 - 1982	Otto Gloria
1970 - 1971 & 1974	Heinz Marotze
1974 - 1978	Jelisavcic 'Tiki' Tohomir
1972 - 1973 & 1963 - 1964	George Penna
1969 - 1970	Peter 'Eto' Amaechina
1965 - 1968	Joseph Ember
1964 - 1965	Daniel Anyiam
1961 - 1963	George Vardar
1960 - 1961	Moshe Beth-Halevi
1956 - 1960	Les Courtier
1954 - 1956	Daniel Anyiam
1949	John Finch

[edit] Top 10 Goalscorers

List of Nigeria's top ten highest ever international goalscorers.

Goal scored	Player name
37	Rashidi Yekini
23	Segun Odegbami
16	Sunday Oyarekhua
16	Samson Siasia
15	Jay-Jay Okocha
15	Thompson Usiyan
14	Julius Aghahowa
12	Daniel Amokachi
12	Asuquo Ekpe
12	Kenneth Olayombo